Playing cards



June 24, 1930. w. o. sNELL'lNG 1,766,465

PLAYING CARDS Filed Dec. 8. 1928 lNvENToR M1251 Q. M

Patented June 24, 1930 i UNITED STATES PATENT ,oFFlcE WALTER O. SNELLIN G, F ALLENTOWN, PENNSYLVANIA PLAYING CARDS Application led December 8, 1928. Serial No. 324,685.

My invention relates to improvements in In the accompanying drawings Fig'. 1 to playing cards, and more particularly relates Fig. 4 represent plan Views showing the face Ato an improved educational card game. of playing cards illustrating certain forms One of the objects of my invention is to pro that my invention may take. 5,vide a card game in which such elements as In the ydrawings Figure 1 is one card 55 perception, mental quickness and reasoning from a pack or deck, illustrating thevpresent ability lwill form important factors of suc'- invention, and Figure 2 is a second card cess, and Will equal or overshadow the from the same pack or deck, but differing in element of chance resulting from the nature type from the card shown in Figure 1. For of the cards received from the dealer.` the purpose of simplifying the present de- 60 For purpose of clarity I Will refer to the scription all symbols have been omitted two principal types of cards which I may from the illustrations which are not of employ in conjunction with my present significance in explaining their operation. invention as window cards and base In Figure l, c is a Window card, upon cards. By window card is meant a card which certain symbols have been inscribed 65 having one' or more holes, openings or as shown. In addition to these symbols, this Windows therein, in conjunction with Words card contains certain holes, openings or or symbols upon the face of the card in windows, h, h1, etc. In Figure 2, c is a reassociation with such windows, the purpose versible base card, upon which certain 200i the Windows being to make visible other Symbols have been inscribed as shown, part 70 symbols upon an underlying card necessary of these symbols being in correct position to complete an incomplete series of symbols When theyedge of the card marked A is upupon the face of the window card. It is not permost, and part of these symbols being necessary that all of the combinations of in. correct position when the edge of the symbols upon a window card should be incard marked B is uppermost. 75 complete, since complete series of symbols In Figure 3, c is a window card upon may be used upon a window card in conjuncwhich certain symbols have been inscribed tion with incomplete series associated with as shown and which also contain certain Windows, to any extent desired. By base windows h, 71,1, etc. Figure 4 is a similar card is meant a card which is not provided Window card, also provided with certain 80 with Windows, but which is provided with insymbols and windows,` the card shown in telligible symbol aggregates which may or Figure 4 being, capable as serving as a base may not represent true or correct statements card when a card as shown in Figure 3 is or equations or aggregates of symbols, but placed upon it, While similarly the card which may be diierentiated upon the basis shown in Figure 4 may serve as a Window of their correctness o'r incorrectness. card if superimposed over the card shown Although I prefer to employ an opening in Figure 3. cut through a card as a window, I do not It will be noted that the card shown in wish to be limited to openings as windows, Figure 1 is primarily a window card, the 40 as I may apply any suitable oily or waxy card shown in Figure 2 is primarily a base material to a limited portion of a card, for card, and the cards shown in Figures 3 and the purpose of forming a. Window therein, 4 may be used interchangeably as Window in the same manner that the windows upon cards or as base cards. Accordingly the dismailing envelopes are now produced. Simitinction between window cards and base cards larly, I may employ a sheet of transparent is not entirely definite, although it is often 95 ortranslucent cellulose such as viscose, or convenient to so distinguish the different a sheet of transparent or translucent types of cards used. pyroXylin plastic such as nitrocellulose, to The second line of symbols upon the card form closed but transparent Windows in the shown in Figure 2 is shown complete, With Window cards herein described. 4symbols both upright and reversed in each of the positions in which such symbols appear upon an actual card. In the other lines symbols not involved in the present illustration have been omitted for the purpose of avoiding undue complexity. As indicated in Figure 2, the symbols upon a base card may be isolated and meaningless in themselves, or unassociated with a window card, or may form complete sets of symbols, words or equations entirely intelligible when standing alone but equally capable of forming a part of a second set of symbols when overlaid by a Window card.

In order to illustrate one Way in which my present invention may be applied, I will assume a pack or deck of twelve cards of the general type shown in Figure 1, and sixty cards of the general type shown in Figure 2, all of the cards of both types 1 and 2 being different with respect to the symbols placed thereon. Any desired number of cards of type 1, and any desired number of cards of type 2, may be dealt out to each player, but for purpose of sim lification I will assume that but one card o type 1 and four cards of Upon type 2 are dealt out to each player. placing card 1 over card 2, so that the two cards are superimposed with their edges in contact, it will be noted thatthe composite card formed by these two cards thus positioned contains a number of statements, part ot which are complete upon card 1, and art of which are only completed by the sym ols which are present on card 2, and which become apparent through the windows h1, ctc. on card 1. Part of the statements are true, and part of the statements are untrue. 1i' card 1 is placed over card 2 with the A edge of card 2 uppermost, then the following statements will be shown:

20 objects make a doz. 2511= 7X 3 It will be obvious that, in the present case statements 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6 are'correct, and 1 and 7 are incorrect.

If We give the composite card a playing correct.

value e ual to the number of correct statements t at occur upon it, it will be evident that cards 1 and 2, with card 2 with its A side uppermost, will have a playing value of 2, but with its B side up ermost, will have a playing value of 5. I as we have assumed, the player has one card corresponding to card 1, and four cards corresponding to card 2, it will be evident that by trying in turn each of the four cards of the type shown by Fig. 2, and by reversing each of these cards so as to find which one of the eight ossibilities gives the highest value, a skillihl player can obtain a high value for his composite card, byl a proper selection of the card of type 4 that he employes with the card of type 1.

In ordinary play, two or more cards of type 1, and six or more cards of type 2, would be dealt` to each player, who would then arrange the cards so as to obtain the highest possible combination by the wise selection of the cards to be used in association.

The cards shown in Figure 3 and Fi ure 4 represent two cards from a pack or eck of variable value window cards, adapted to be used without special base cards, a window card being laid over another window card to form a composite card pair unit which is played as a sin le card. If card 3 is laid over card 4, the ollowing statements would be shown:

It will be evident that lines 1, 2, 5 and 7 represent correct or true statements and that lines 3, 4 and 6 represent incorrect or untrue statements. Accordingly, when card 3 is placed over card 4, the card pair unit has a playing value of 4. If card 4 overlies card 3 however, the following statements would be shown:

Upon inspection, it will be observed that not one single statement in the above list is Accordingly, the good player will place card 3 upon card 4, to obtain a playing value of 4, while the same two cards Would have a playing value of 0, if card 4 were placed upon card 3. In a pack of cards running from 24 cards to 72 cards for example, a remarkably wide range of selectioli is possible, and a good player will obtain a number of card pairs having playing values of 5, 6 or 7, where a less skillful player will only be able to obtaili average values of 3 or ulidcr.

'llie iilaxiliiulii playing value that any single card or any unitary pair of cards can have is of course limited by the number of lilies or equations or symbol aggregates that are usediipon such cards. In the illustration each card is shown to have seven lilies, and accordingly would have a playing value ot' 7 it' all ofthe statements or equations. were correct. In practice I have ouiid 7 lilies to a card to be a convenient number, but for advanced players cards containing l0 or l2 lilies or symbol aggregates ma be used, and similarly for iiiexperience or juvenile players cards containing only 2 vor 3 lilies may be employed, in order to avoid undulyy fatiguing the player by the necessity ot' making an excessive number of mental calculations for each of the many combinations that his cards may make possible.

Many entirely different card games involving elements of both chance and skill may 4le played with cards of the kind herein described, in just the saine way that many dozens of entirely different card games may be played with a deck of ordinary playing cards. lI do not wish to limit myself to any particular gaine that may be played with cards as herein described, but for purpose of illustration I will describe one game, having sonic similarity to the game of Whist as played with an ordinary deck of playing cards. After thorough shuliling three Window cards and six base cards would be dealt in rotation to each of the four players. A time limit of say three minutes, which may be conveniently measured by a small sand timing glass is allowed between the time of completing the dealing of the cards and the laying down of the iirst card by the player to the left of the dealer. Within this period of three minutes the diiferent players would arrange their cards so as to get the highest ifalues possible, and each player would then in turn place upon the table in front of him the highest card that he could make by the combination of any Window card in his hand with any base caid in his hand, the player playing the highest card taking the trick, and leading in the next play.

It will be obvious that the game as thus described will be most suitable for a mentally alert person, and it is also true that for good playing the game will tax the ability of a person of excellent reasoning faculties. Each combination that is tried of a Window card with a base card, (and in either of the positions in which the base card can lie in the case of reversible base cards) will involve the solving of Aa number of mathematical problems, and the players will score in accordance with their ability to make the most of their cards to such an extent that the abilit factor can if desired be made to quite overs adow the element of chance involved in the deal itself.

For younger or less experienced players, cards involving the general principles of the cards herein described, but containing rela-` tively simple mathematical problems or wholly non-mathematical statements may be substituted. 'Insteadmf such a statement as 4 4= O, (the symbol O being used herein to indicate a window) as shown on the first line of card 1, there can be used, for example a sentence .such as A rose is O and in this case on the underlying card circles of various colors such as' red, blue green and violet could be used, in place of the numbers shown on the vpresent cards. By proper selection of a window card and a ase card, the skillful juvenile player could so arrange a pair of cardsthat a red circle underlies the Window at the end of the sentence A rose is Q and a card so arranged would score over a card in which the color disk on the base card Was green, blue or Violet. Thus a pack or deck of cards involving the present invention could be made that would be entirely suitable for very young players, and the game thus constituted has very great educational value, in quickening the perceptive and reasoning faculties. For mature players cards involving advanced mathematics could be used, or for non-math` ematical advanced players other ap ropriate groups of statements could be use Thus, in a set of cards for chemists, such statements as The atomic Weight of aluminum is O and Sulfur units With oxygen to` form Q could be used, the first statement being correct when a base card having 27 under the first Window was selected, and the second statement being correct when a base card havin SO2 under the second Window Was selecte The application of the presen't invention to problems involving algebra, trigonometry, square root, cube root, differential and integral calculus, permutations and combinations and other advanced mathematics will of course be obvious.

Instead of employing Window cards and base cards in conjunction, I may employ cards without Windows exclusively, or I may have Windows in all of my cards, in this case the Windows exposing symbols upon an underlying card that when not thus covered by another card may or may not form part of an entirely independent statement, sentence or set of symbols.

An exceptionally Wide variety of types of playing cards may be made in accordance with my present invention. I may employ base cards of one color, shade or tint and Window cards of another color, shade or tint, or I may make both base cards and window cards of'paper or other suitable material without differentiation except as to the symbols imprinted upon such cards. The holes or windows may .differ in shape, vsize or location, or may be further dil'erentiated by being bordered by a small band of color, which may if desired be different on different cards. The symbols used may differ in style of type, color of ink, or in any other desired characteristic. The cardsmay be symmetrical With respect to either the vertical axis of the card or symmetrical with the horizontal axis of the card or symmetrical as to neither.\` I prefer to employ base cards that are reversible, as shown in Figure 2, and With symbols that are so arranged as to always show through the windows in proper position regardless of which end of the base card is uppermost, but this is not essential.

I may entirely dispense with base cards,

all of my cards being window cards as shown in Figure 3 and Figure 4, or I may entirely dispense with window cards and only employ cards Without windows or openings. tively few complete and with man or all incomplete sets of symbols, or may e made with relatively few incomplete sets of s mbols and with many or all sets of sym ols entirely complete. Any individual card may contain few or many correct symbol sequences and few or many incorrect symbol sequences, as may be desired. Although I prefer to use digits or numbers mainly in forming my symbol sequences, I may employ colors, letters, words, or other desired types of symbols. If desired the base cards may be complete in themselves or may be used in conjunction with the window cards to any desired extent. For example, if a base card had a playing value of 5 before being covered by a window card and a playing value of but 4 when covered by the best window card in the hand of the player, it would be more desirable to play it uncovered, or to place the base card over the window card and then play the composite card thus formed, unless the rules of the particular game that was being played forbid this form of play.

In View of the great number and wide variety of changes that may be made in the design of playing cards made in accordance with my present invention I -do not wish to be limited to any of the specific illustrations herein given, since all of these have been shown for purpose of illustration and not by Way of limitation, and accordingly no limitations should be placed upon my invention except such as are indicated in the appended claims.

I claim:

1. Playing cards comprising a plurality The `cards may be mad-e with relaof cards each inscribed with a plurality oi groups of symbols forming individual intelligible combinations, some combinations of symbols being correct and some combinations of symbols being incorrect, the playing value of any card being determined by the number of correct combinations upon it.

2. Playing cards comprising a plurality of cards each card inscribed with a plurality of statements, some statements being correct and some statements being incorrect, the playing value of any card being determined y the number of correct combinations upon it. 4

3. Playing cards comprising a plurality of cards inscribed with a plura ity of incomplete groups of symbols in association with windows through which additional symbols necessary to complete such groups may be shown, some combinations of symbols being correct and some combinations being incorrect.

4. Playing cards comprisin a plurality of cards inscribed with a lura it of incomplete groups of symbols in association with windowsV through vwhich additional symbols necessary to complete such groups may be shown, some combinations of symbols being correct and some combinations being incorrect, the playing value of any card being determined by thenumber of correct combinations upon it.l

5. Playing cards comprising a plurality of cards each inscribed with one or more groups of symbols forming intelligible combinations and one or more incomplete groups of symbols in association with windows through which additional symbols necessary to complete such incomplete groups may be shown, some combinations of symbols being correct and some combinations being incorrect.

6. Playing cards comprising a plurality of cards each inscribed with one or more groups of symbols lforming intelligible combinations and one or more incomplete groups of symbols in association with windows through which additional symbols necessary to complete such incomplete groups may be shown, some combinations of symbols being correct and some-combinations being incorrect, the playing value of any cai'd being determined by the number of correct combinations upon it.

7. Playing cardsk comprising a plurality of window cards and a plurality of base cards each window card being inscribed with a plurality of groups of incomplete symbols each in association with a window and each being correct and some combinations of symbols being incorrect.

8. Playing cards comprising a plurality of Windows7 cards and a plurality of base cards each window card being inscribed with a plurality of groups of incomplete symbols each in association with a Window and each base card being inscribed with a pluralitg of symbols capable of being seen throug such Windows of a Window card properly placed upon it and capable of completing the set of symbols to form an intelligible combination, some combinations of symbols being correct and some combinations of symbols being incorrect, the playing Value of any group of a base card and a Window card lying upon it being determined by the number of correct combinations upon the composite card unit.

In testimony whereof, I have hereunto subscribed my name this 5th day of December, 1928.

WALTER O. SNELLING. 

